Justice may be deposed in suit claiming State Farm orchestrated his election, judge rules
A federal judge in East St. Louis, Illinois, has ruled that Justice Lloyd Karmeier of the Illinois Supreme Court may be deposed in a RICO suit claiming State Farm orchestrated his 2004 election.
U.S District Judge David Herndon said Karmeier may be deposed about the strategy and funding for the 2004 judicial election, according to a Reuters column by Alison Frankel. Policyholders had alleged State Farm backed Karmeier’s election with the expectation he would vote to overturn a $1 billion class-action judgment against the insurer.
Herndon said lawyers may question Karmeier about his decision to run in 2004, the persons he consulted when making the decision, how his campaign was managed and financed and who was involved in campaign decision-making and strategy, according to a story by the Madison-St. Clair Record.
Karmeier joined other justices in overturning the judgment against State Farm in 2005.
Herndon’s February 26 ruling (PDF) overturns a decision to quash the subpoena by a U.S. magistrate judge, who said plaintiffs were improperly seeking information about the deliberative process.
Herndon also allowed a deposition of State Farm vice president Robert Shultz, who won reversal of the judgment against State Farm while in private law practice, the Madison-St. Clair Record says. The plaintiffs allege Shultz participated in an Illinois State Bar Association committee that evaluated Karmeier and gave him a highly qualified rating in February 2004.
Hat tip to How Appealing.
